earlier, house speaker john boehner told reporters that allowing tax cuts for the wealthy to expire at the end of the year would be harmful to the economy. "the congressional budget office released a report that the most harmful consequences of the fiscal cliff come from increasing tax rates, and according to ernst and young, raising the top rates would destroy nearly 700,000 jobs in our country." the fiscal cliff is the result of the unresolved debt ceiling debate a year-and-a-half ago: $110 billion in spending cuts - half of it defense-related. it's also a list of tax breaks about to expire that includes: the bush tax cuts, the alternative minimum tax, reduced payroll tax, and the federal unemployment benefit extension. some believe that negotiations come so soon after the election that it may put pressure on republicans to compromise. "it's going to be a disaster if it doesn't get done, and the blame will be on them. they have to compromise - something they didn't do in the last session." when pressed for details as to what ground republicans could give in negotiations, house speake